2nd - 6th Grade Author's Purpose Worksheets

Authors persuade, inform, and entertain through various types of writing! Students set out to identify the author’s purpose.

Learners will practice identifying the author's purpose in eight sample paragraphs, using text evidence to support their choice.

Identifying the author’s purpose is as easy as P-I-E with the right mnemonic device!

This short nonfiction text will teach students about the ocean, and includes questions to help students identify the author’s point of view and purpose for writing the text by focusing on important vocabulary words that support the main idea.

Learners will categorize 12 different types of text according to why the author would write them, using the acronym PIE as a mnemonic device.

All authors write for a reason, be it to explain, entertain, or persuade their readers. In this activity, your students will consider the author’s purpose of a book of their choosing, then justify their answer.

Students are asked to distinguish between first and third person narration as well as fiction or nonfiction writing.

Use this worksheet to encourage critical thinking and support students’ literacy development by asking questions before, during, and after reading.

Children will practice bringing excitement to their writing in this fun language and vocabulary worksheet.

Learners will review a definition for each type of author's purpose, then sort nine sentences according to these criteria.

This worksheet gives your students practice reading and analyzing informational text to explain the author’s claim and supporting reasons.

This nonfiction text about soccer will help students to practice finding evidence to support the author's point.

This informational text about a topic relevant to students can be used to help explain author’s claims and the reasons used to support them.

Similes are all around us—sometimes you just need a little context to know how to decipher them! This lighthearted story about a twisted ankle contains two hidden similes. Can your students find them?

Use this worksheet to provide an engaging text for your students as they practice reading and analyzing an author’s claims.

Learn about Eleanor Roosevelt, the groundbreaking first lady known for her humanitarian work and for being the first U.S.delegate to the United Nations in 1942.

This graphic organizer helps students work through a nonfiction text to help organize information about the author’s point, and the reasons and evidence used to support it.

Students will rewrite the narration and point of view of various texts.

Your students will love reading this classic fable as they seek to determine the author’s purpose and differentiate fiction from nonfiction.

Differentiating between facts and opinions is a key fourth grade skill to master and is helpful in identifying the author’s purpose in a text. Use this activity to give your students extra practice differentiating between these two kinds of sentences.

Use this two-page graphic organizer to help students compare and contrast informational narratives from two different genres.

Students will read an adaptation of the classic story "The Princess and the Pea" by Hans Christian Andersen. Then they'll seek to determine the author’s purpose and explain their reasoning.

Use this resource to give your students practice reading a short nonfiction passage and recognizing the author’s viewpoint about the topic. Then, they will pick out the text evidence that supports the author’s viewpoint.

Use this resource with your students to practice recognizing the author’s point of view in a text about a major historical event. Students will read a passage about the Tsunami of 2004 and determine the author’s viewpoint as they establish their own point

Use this Novel Discussion Guide for Parents as a guide to invite your child into a book discussion about their latest reading!

Ideal for fourth and fifth graders, this worksheet includes figurative language examples and definitions on the first page, and a second full page of questions and tasks that can be used to check for understanding.

This graphic organizer can help students analyze a story, scenario, disagreement or controversy from multiple perspectives.

From the topic of roller coasters to the topic of spinach, this kid-friendly worksheet guides a student in comparing their opinion to the opinions of the fictional character named “Jimmy.”

When your students read this exaggerated tale, they will find a ton of hyperboles!

Help your second grade students identify the evidence behind the author’s purpose.